The clinics at the Cockburn Gateway shopping centre precinct and Joondalup have been turned into urgent-care centres.

The urgent-care centres will be used to treat patients with non life-threatening conditions including sprains or possible breaks, cuts that require stitches, minor burns and flu and cold symptoms.

The centres will operate from 8am to 10pm and be staffed by a doctor, nurse and paramedics, with the aim of easing the burden on hospital emergency departments.

Clinics will accept walk-in patients and there are plans to include ambulance arrivals in the future, but patients will only be taken to an urgent-care centre rather than an emergency department when it is considered clinically appropriate and the patient gives consent.